Daniel Maldini


Daniel Maldini is an Italian footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder for club Milan.

Early life

Maldini was born in Milan, the second son of then A.C. Milan captain Paolo Maldini and Adriana Fossa, a model from Venezuela. His grandfather Cesare also captained Milan in the 1960s. His elder brother Christian played for Milan's youth teams and went on to play professionally at a lower level.
Daniel joined Milan's youth system in 2010, and over the following years he came through the various age-group teams, from the under-10 Pulcini to the under-19 Primavera. In the 2016–17 season, he was part of the squad that won the Under-16 National Championship, defeating Roma 5–2 in the final.
On 21 March 2020, it was confirmed that Daniel and his father both tested positive for COVID-19, amid its pandemic in Italy; by 8 April, he and his father had recovered.

Club career

Maldini made his senior debut with Milan in a 1–1 Serie A home draw against Hellas Verona on 2 February 2020, coming on as an added-time substitute for Samu Castillejo.

International career

Maldini won his first international cap for Italy at the under-18 level, in a 2–0 win against the Netherlands on 22 March 2019. Subsequently, he won two further caps for the under-19 side in the same year.

Style of play

Although in his very early days Maldini played as a defender like both his father Paolo and grandfather Cesare, he soon started to be employed in offensive roles. Today he mainly plays as a free roaming attacking midfielder, a position that suits his playmaking ability, dribbling skills, ball control, and vision.

Career statistics